Italy Excursions

[ggo85]

We are taking RCCL's Legend to Italy and Croatia this summer. My question is which ports are easy to do on your own -- walking or public transport -- and, for those where you need to take an excusion, which one(s) do you recommend. FYI, we aren't into hiring private guides -- understand the advantages but in our view the disadvantages outweigh them. So, we're talking ship's excursions.

 

We are able to do walking tours and enjoy them but do not want to hike, bike, helicopter, sail, etc. Do not want excusions that are all about eating or shopping. Not into art museums. Like to see the country and learn about history. Hope that helps.

 

Ports are: Florence, Venice, Naples, Portofino, Messina, Dubrovnik. (And, yes, I know the ship doesn't actually dock in Florence or Venice!).

 

Any help would be appreciated.

[ShopperfiendTO]

We are taking RCCL's Legend to Italy and Croatia this summer. My question is which ports are easy to do on your own -- walking or public transport -- and, for those where you need to take an excusion, which one(s) do you recommend. FYI, we aren't into hiring private guides -- understand the advantages but in our view the disadvantages outweigh them. So, we're talking ship's excursions.

 

We are able to do walking tours and enjoy them but do not want to hike, bike, helicopter, sail, etc. Do not want excusions that are all about eating or shopping. Not into art museums. Like to see the country and learn about history. Hope that helps.

 

Ports are: Florence, Venice, Naples, Portofino, Messina, Dubrovnik. (And, yes, I know the ship doesn't actually dock in Florence or Venice!).

 

 

Ship should dock in Venice.

 

On your own, with research, quite do-able in Venice, Naples (Pompeii/Capri; if doing Amalfi, might want an excursion/driver to not miss ship), Portofino and Dubrovnik.

 

As you indicated, Florence is far from the ship's dock (1.5hrs) so you might want the ship's excursion to get you there and pick you up. Never been to Messina so no comment (other than it's usually a dock port).

[janellmartin]

We did the Italy and Croatia 13 night cruise on the Legend last year, and did every port on our own. In Messina we took the train to Taormina, in Naples we caught a taxi to the train station and took the Circumvesuvium train to Pompeii, in Dubrovnik we walked the wall and walked to the fortress above town, in Split we stayed in the Old Town all day, and in Livorno we took a taxi to the train station and then took the train to Florence. We took an overnight bag and spent the night in Florence. On the way back to Livorno the next day, we hopped off the train in Pisa and visited the Leaning Tower. We took the 2:27 train out of Florence and were back at the ship by 5:00, including the side visit to the Leaning Tower. (This was all done for less money that it would have cost for one of us to take a singe day cruise tour of Florence and Pisa). Venice was amazing on our own. Once you wander away from the Piazza San Marco there are few crowds and much to see. We waited until later in the day to see St. Mark's Basilica, when the crowds had thinned. All the ports are easily done on your own.

[bjrose]

Hey Sweetmom,

Would love to see your posts, but for some reason I can't get on to see any of them? SOS.

bjrose

[KCcruisin07]

Florence, Dubrovnik, & Veniceyou can do on your own.

Portofino: tendered port/sea too choppy/planned to take tour to Cinque Terre, but that involves hiking

Naples: depends on what you want to do. We did the ship excursion of Pompeii, Capri, and Sorrento and if I were doing it again I would go on an independent tour. There are people who can tell how to do Pompeii and Capri OYO.

Messina: you might do better on the shore excursion that gets you to Taormina and lets you see the amphitheater and explore Corso Umberto, the main street, on your own.

[GSPLover]

We did the same cruise last Oct (except we had one more day.) I can almost guarantee that any ships excursion that you take with have shopping somewhere along the line - it goes with the territory.

 

We did no ships excursions. See our review listed in the sig line below. You might also read the Italian Trains link as it can help with DIY excursions.

 

It is a great cruise itinerary and you can DIY with a small amount of planning and therefore save a lot of $$$.

[Dubrovniktravelady]

We are taking RCCL's Legend to Italy and Croatia this summer. My question is which ports are easy to do on your own -- walking or public transport -- and, for those where you need to take an excusion, which one(s) do you recommend. FYI, we aren't into hiring private guides -- understand the advantages but in our view the disadvantages outweigh them. So, we're talking ship's excursions.

 

We are able to do walking tours and enjoy them but do not want to hike, bike, helicopter, sail, etc. Do not want excusions that are all about eating or shopping. Not into art museums. Like to see the country and learn about history. Hope that helps.

 

Ports are: Florence, Venice, Naples, Portofino, Messina, Dubrovnik. (And, yes, I know the ship doesn't actually dock in Florence or Venice!).

 

Any help would be appreciated.

Walking the city wall of Dubrovnik is not hiking, however it can be a strenuous walk for those who are not into walking and steps, lots of steps. If you want information of the sights in Dubrovnik, may I suggest you visit the Dubrovnik tourist bureau website, it is excellent and download their city map. Also do read my posts, as I have posted much valuable information regarding my home.